The one-day dawn-to-dusk bandh in Tamil Nadu, called by a consortium of traders, farmers and opposition parties, including the DMK, on Friday to protest against Karnataka’s intransigent attitude in releasing the Cauvery water, went off peacefully as no major incident of violence was reported. Streets were deserted, buses ran half-empty and commercial establishments remained closed.
M K Stalin was detained for blocking a train at Egmore. Thol Thirumavalavan and MDMK leader Vaiko were also detained and released in the evening for similar protests.
Citing water shortage in their own reservoirs, the Karnataka had refused to release water to Tamil Nadu earlier this year. However, the Supreme Court directed release of 12,000 cusecs of water. Opposing this, pro-Kannadiga outfits hit the streets last week and things turned worse when vehicles with Tamil Nadu registration numbers and Tamils were attacked.
Condemning these acts of violence, a state-wide bandh was planned and executed successfully by farmers, trade organisations and opposition parties across districts.
Though government buses plied as per routine, lull gripped the city and the busy streets of T Nagar, Purasawalkam, Guindy and Koyambedu wore a deserted look. Almost all commercial establishments including hotels, textile outlets, banks and a few fuel stations remained closed. A similar trend was observed even in other tier-II cities of Madurai, Coimbatore and Tiruchy.
While all government schools functioned, several private schools were shut down. The quarterly exam scheduled for Friday was postponed to Saturday in most of these schools.
All film-related activities were suspended and all shows in the theatres until 6 pm were cancelled. However, hospitals, pharmacies and other essential services continued to operate.
Nearly 15 attempts to picket trains were reported and in some places of the capital city, effigies of Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah were burnt.
Aggrieved over the fact that a private car showroom in Nandanam operated despite repeated calls for the bandh, DMK cadres pelted stones wrapped in milk packets at the showroom. The display glasses at the entrance were shattered. However, no complaint was filed.
An attempt made by the coordination committee of the All Farmers Association to lay a siege to the Saidapet railway station brought the lean traffic along roads in the area to a grinding halt for hours. Nearly 35,000 across the State were detained for protests and released later in the evening.
M K Stalin was detained for blocking a train at Egmore. Thol Thirumavalavan and MDMK leader Vaiko were also detained and released in the evening for similar protests.
Citing water shortage in their own reservoirs, the Karnataka had refused to release water to Tamil Nadu earlier this year. However, the Supreme Court directed release of 12,000 cusecs of water. Opposing this, pro-Kannadiga outfits hit the streets last week and things turned worse when vehicles with Tamil Nadu registration numbers and Tamils were attacked.
Condemning these acts of violence, a state-wide bandh was planned and executed successfully by farmers, trade organisations and opposition parties across districts.
Though government buses plied as per routine, lull gripped the city and the busy streets of T Nagar, Purasawalkam, Guindy and Koyambedu wore a deserted look. Almost all commercial establishments including hotels, textile outlets, banks and a few fuel stations remained closed. A similar trend was observed even in other tier-II cities of Madurai, Coimbatore and Tiruchy.
While all government schools functioned, several private schools were shut down. The quarterly exam scheduled for Friday was postponed to Saturday in most of these schools.
All film-related activities were suspended and all shows in the theatres until 6 pm were cancelled. However, hospitals, pharmacies and other essential services continued to operate.
Nearly 15 attempts to picket trains were reported and in some places of the capital city, effigies of Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah were burnt.
Aggrieved over the fact that a private car showroom in Nandanam operated despite repeated calls for the bandh, DMK cadres pelted stones wrapped in milk packets at the showroom. The display glasses at the entrance were shattered. However, no complaint was filed.
An attempt made by the coordination committee of the All Farmers Association to lay a siege to the Saidapet railway station brought the lean traffic along roads in the area to a grinding halt for hours. Nearly 35,000 across the State were detained for protests and released later in the evening.